Integrating Observations and Models to Examine Changing Heat and Mass Balance of Sea Ice in the Beaufort Sea.

Over the past 25 years there has been a drastic reduction in the summer sea ice cover in the Beaufort Sea. Here we explore changes in the heat and mass balance by synthesizing data from autonomous ice mass balance buoys, reanalysis products, satellite observations, and numerical simulations. Winter growth rates are determined and are combined with snow depth and ice thickness to generate estimates of net surface flux. The total amount of surface and bottom melt, as well as time series of melt rates are determined and compared to estimates of ice concentration, ice motion, and incident short wave radiation. From the mid-1990s to the present there has been a general increase in bottom melting and an increase in the solar heat input to the upper ocean. Time series of bottom ablation data show a connection to the motion of the ice and the total heat content of the upper ocean. Relationships between incoming shortwave radiation, surface ablation, and melt pond formation are also explored.